Vending-machine.



J. SCHMIDT. VENDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 6, 1907.

12, 1909. a sums-5mm 1.

Patented Jan J. SCHMIDT. VENDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 5, 1907.

PatentedJan. 12, 1909.

a SHEETS-fi-HEET 2.

J. SCHMIDT. VENDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 5, 1907.

Patented Jan. 12, 1909.

3 SHEETS-811321 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIC I.

JOHN SCHMIDT, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO INTERNATIONAL VENDING MACHINE COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI.

VENDING-MACHINE.

To all whom "it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN SCHMIDT, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Improvement. in Vending-Machines, of which the following isa specification. v

This invention relates to machines for vending cigars and has for its principal objects to insure the proper delivery of the cigars without injury thereto, to expose the .use of slugs, and to attain other advantages hereinafter forth.

The invention consists in the parts and in the arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing, which forms part of this specification, and wherein like symbols refer to like parts wherever they occur, Figure 15's a vertical cross-secti on 'of acigar vending machine embodying my. invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the hopper and delivery cylinder; Fig. 3

is an end View of the delitery cylinder; Fig. 45 is. a longitudinal sectional view of the delivery cylinder on the line 4% of Fig. '3;

'Fi 5 is a lon itudinal sectional view of the deFivery cylinder on the line 5 5 of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is a detail view of the cylinder centering device; Fig. 7'is a side View of the machine at thebeginning of the actuating moven'icnt; Fig. 8 is a similar View showing the positions of the parts at the beginning of the return movement; Fig. is a perspective view of the coin hopper; Fig. 10 isa vertical section thereof; and, Fig. 11 adetail view of the counterweighted bottom of the coin hopper.

.My vending ma chine comprises a casing or housing 1 lnslde of whiclrare mounted the feeding and delivery mechanisms and the-- main portions of the actuating mechanism.

The main frame upon which these parts are mounted comprises a base portion 3 and two sides 4, preferably made of a single plate of .heavy sheet metal. The several shafts hereinafter. mentioned are journaled in the said side' portions of the 'frame.

The delivery mechanism comprises a hollow cylindrical shell 5 fixed to a shaft-6' which is journaled in the side plates. This' cylindrical shell is'preferably made 'of f'sheet metal and has longitudinal depressions or pockets 7, formed in the periphery thereof of Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 5, 1907.

Patented Jan. 12, 1909.

Serial No. 887,008.

The false bottom and thespring arebeld in place by a screw bolt: 10 or 'hfil" suitable fastener which extends through them and the bottom of the pocket and is provided with a nut or enlargement inside of the-cylinder. The hole in the false bottom is 'conntersunk by depressing the edges thereof, whereby the beveled head of the screw bolt lies flush with the upper surface of said false bottom, and the spring plate is-positioned by the downwardly projecting "'inargin of said hole.

Above said deliver cylinder is the feed mechanism. Thisfeedmechanism comprises i a hopper of which the "side plates 4 of the frame constitute the ends. hopper consist of movable members, prefer-- The sides of the i ably endless belts 11, 12 of rubber or other J elastic material. These movable sides are. ar ranged at a considerable angle to'each other, one of them 11 being nearly horizontal and the other 12 being nearlyvertical. The frame is provided with a support 13 for an ordinary cigar box in such position that the lower end of the box overla s the outer end of the horizontal side of the hopper. The endless belts constituting the movable sides of'the hopper are mountedupon the drums or shafts 14, 15, which are provided with. sprocket. wheels 16, 17. Over thesesprocketwhee-ls passes a sprocket chain 18 which (:0- operates with idle sprocket wheels 19 and is arranged to be actuated as hereinafter dcscribed. The hopper opening or space between the movable members of the hopper is I immediately above the delivery" cylinder, and

the cylinder actuating mechanism" is a ri loo ranged to bring the pockets therein into register with said' opening successiveb'; By this arrangement, the lowermostr. or other article in the hopper is deliveret into the pocket, and the yielding false bottom of" 10 5' the pocket protects the cigar against injury during theanoi'ementof the,cylinder. A

roller 20 is mounted in the frame and has a gear wheel'21 meshin with a gear Wheel 22 xed to the shaft of t e sprocket wheel 17.

In order to revent the hopper from becomin clogged the movable sides are arrange to be moved simultaneously, the horizontal side being moved towaids the hopper opening at the same time that the vertical member is moved upwardly therefrom. This upward movement of the vertical member has a tendency to straighten out the cigars and to relieve the lowermost cigars from the weight of those above them. This movement of the horizontal. side towards the delivery o ening occurs during the forward stroke'o the actuating mechanism; and the return stroke of the actuating mechanism:

causes a reversal of the movement of the movablesides of the hopper. .By this arrangement, the forward movement of the delivery -cylinder brings an empty ipocket into register with the opening of the ed hopper so that the lowermostclgar therein is free to with a snap-acting ce'nterin dro into said oc'ket. As hereinafter desc -i ed, the de lvery' cylinder is provided device so ardeliver'y cylranged-that the pocket of t e per opening inder registers with the ho before'theend of theforwar the horizontal side. of the hop er. In consequence of this' arran ement, t e movement 'of the-horizontal side as a tendency to dis;

IV which 'eonstitutes a trap or seat 28 whose other end'is connected to a,- the toothof alodg'e'a'nd'feed forwardly the bottommos r-in case it should become stuck.

actuatin mechanism com rises a manually-opera!) e push-bar 23wh1ch traverm .end' of a coinchute 24.- This coinchuteterminates in-a constricted ortion 25 is in position to ear against e end of a lever. 27 to which is fastened one end of a pawl 29' arranged to ratchet wheelBO mounmn the shaft-of the delivery The. manua'll -operable bar hasia. 'hxorprojection 31 t ereolr artofbear-ast the lowermost tooth. of aratcjhet' wh .82 fixed on the shaft of I the-delivery cylinder.- The cylinderisalso .viceofsuit'able type.

provided witha snapsactin centering de- 'As .i ustrate'd in the 'dlawing-th'isfeenterin' devioe comprises a wheel'1831mount 'gzlive'ry cylinder, and ananti-friction roller arrahged'to .agalnst the periphery ofinountedupo'n a spring-pressed arm 35 said star-wheel; 5B) this arrangement, .the

pressure of the spring transmitted through v the anti-friction rollerlan'd the 'starwheel causes. a rapidmovement of the cylinder as soon as the roller passes the apex, of the tooth-of'the. star-wheel and-before theactu ating-b'ar reaches theinner limit of its m'ovein 36 men The' actuating bar carries a which an elongated 81,011 on yo e of a movement 'of or a coin-.-. .A coin 28 of r0 1 size restin inthis seat on the shaft ofthe lever or pivoted arm 87, which is held in normal position by a SpIll'l 38. This arm is fixed to the sprocket chain 18 which passes over the sprocket wheels mounted on the belt-actuatingl shafts and also over the idle sprockets, w ereby both the forward and the backward movement of the actuating bar are transmitted to the belts. The inward movement bears the actuating bar against the coin, which constitutes an element in the train for disengaging or unlocking the the coin has performed its function in this train, it is ejected into a chute 40 which t erminates in a slot-41 in the side of'a coin box 42. The coin trap or rest has a constricted channel or assageway 43' beneath it leading into this ciiute 40,.said passageway being intended to eliminate c'olns of small size. The top or side of the-coin box is provided with a glass panel 44 to permit the inspection of the contents. The bottom 45 of the coin box is a plate pivota'lly' mounted near one end and-heavily weighted at the shorter end. .The weight'of the short end is suificient to sustain a number of coins resting on the bottom plate, but is small enough to be overbalanced by flbCOHSldBIflblG number of coins. .B this arrangement, the contents of the coin ox remain in full view'u'ntil there is a considerable number of coins. In fact,

balanced by the weight of-a definite numberwith their positions. The liability to detec- "tion thus brou ht about has a tendency to. protect, the mac ine against the use, of-sugs and the like. Beneath-the. dumping of the coin box is a. chute which opens; into. a suitable chamber or receptacle in the interior of the casing. Obviously, my device is ca this of .consid erable' modification within tescope of my inyention, and therefore, 1 do not wish to hc ng d c i ed-1 tsh m -1mg; nv nti n enid s by-h m e .i

. 1. A .vendingmach'ine comprisin .a hopeper whichis. composed of two end pates and two reciprocatab e belts between said plate one of saidbelts bei nearly horizontal an the other .bein% near yverticah and means,

for moving sa belts'si;'nultaneo'usly 1,:

' 2; A' vending machineha ng 'a hop ciprocatable .belts, one 0 said belts being nearly horizontal and the other bei nearly vertical, and means for reciprocating said belts. Y 3. A vending. machine havin mechanism, anearl horizontal ltjformin one side of a fee hopper therefor and a nearly vertical belt .forminganothelfi' thereof, and means forlmovingsaid-t ho' {if v i l cylinder to permit rotation thereof. When the counterweightis not uniformly overof coins, because theJeVerage action varies;

be'rsstricted 0 the particular constructionw.

per composed-of two end'Flates'and-two re I 125.. agdelivery'- 5. A vending machine comprising actuat ing mechanism, a delivery device, and a hopp r, saidhopper comprising two elastic sides, and ,means for reciprocating said sides in op- 'posite directions simultaneously.

6. A vending machine comprising a deliveryv cylinder having peripheral. pockets and a hopper above sa d cylinder, said hopper havin two movable sides, means for-moving one o gaid sides towards the hopper opening and means for actuating said cylinder coniprising asnap acting device arranged to center the pockets below said hopper during the movement of said'side towards the hopper.

0 7. A'vending machine comprising a delivery cylinder having peripheral pockets, and a hopper 'above said cylinder, said hopper having a substantially horizontal sid eand a substantially vertical side, and means for moving the horizontal side towfirds the hopper opening and simultaneously moving the vertical side away from said hopper opening, and means for actuating said cylinder comprising a snap-acting device arranged to center'the pockets below said hopper during the movement of the horizontal side towards the hopper opening.

8. vending machine comprising a delivery cylinder having peripheral pockets, and a hopper above said cylinder, said hopper having a substantially horizontal side and a substantially vertical side, and means for moving the'horizontal side'towards the hopper opening andsiinultaneously moving the vertical side away from said hopper opening, said means being adapted to reverse the movement of said sides, and means for actuating said cylinder comprising a snap-acting device arranged to. center the pockets below said hopper during the movement of the horizontal side towards the hopper openin In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses this 2nd day of August, 1907.

JOHN SCHMIDT. Witnesses -G. A. PENMNGTON,

J. B. MEoowN. 

